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ADJUSTABLE EOLDEE EOE'TEE SIG'KLE BAES OE MOWEES'ANE EEAPESES. No. 273,504. Patented Mar.6,1883.

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` UNITED STATES PATENT @Errea 'GEORGE W. FREEMAN, OF AMHERST, NOVA SCTIA,-GANADA.

ADlUSTABLlE HOLDER FUR THE SlCKLE-BARS OF MOWERS AND REAPERS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters'latent No. 273,504, dated March 6, 1883.

Application filed November 18, 1882. (No model.) Patented in Canada April 19, 1882, No. 14,6715.

To all whom it may concern:

Beit known that I, GEORGE WILLIAM FREE- MAN, of Amherst, in the county of Cumberland, Province of Nova Scotia, and Dominion -of Canada, vhave, invented a new and useful through the line w fr, Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a View ofthe under side of the improvement. Fig. 4 represents a modifled form of the case or cover. The object of this invention is to promote the eticiency and durability of the sickles of mowers and reapers or other harvesters. The invention consists in the combination, with the finger-bar and the sickle-bar of a mower, reaper, or other harvester, of sliding bolts having recesses in their heads to receive and loosely hold the said sickle-bar, and provided with springs to hold the bolts forward and guides'to keep them in position, whereby the sickles will be made to operate with adrawing out. The sliding bolts and their springs are covered and protected by cases which have longitudinal slots in their sides to receive the fastening bolts, so that the said bolts and springs can be moved forward to take up wear of the. cutters, as will be hereinafter fully described.

A represents the n'ger-ba r, B is the sickle.

bar, C the fingers, and D the sickles or lcutters, of an ordinary mower, reaper, or other harvester. e

In the drawings only one'bolt, spring, and case are'shown; but it will be understood that two or more sets of the said bolts, springs, and cases should be used upon each cutter-bar.

E is a bolt, rod, or bar, the lower side of the forwardend or head of which has a recess, F, formed in it to receive the sickle-bar B, when the said sickle-bar is attached to the upper sides of the sickles D. When the sickles D are attached to the upper side of the sicklebar B short bars are attached to the upper sides of the said sickles D to enterthe recesses F o f the bolts E. The rear ends of the bolts E passt-hrough guide-holes in supports Gr, attached to or formed upon the nger-bar A or the case H that covers and protects the bolts E. The bolt E is held forward by a coiled or other shaped spring, I, of metal or other sui'table material, the forward end of which rests against the head of the said bolt E, and its rear end rests against or is attached to the guide G or other support secured to the case or cover H. The forward movement of the bolt E is limited by a pin or nut, J, passed through or screwed upon the rear end of the said bolt E.

K is a washer, of rubber or other elastic material, interposed between the guide G and the pin or nut J to preventa jar when thebolt E comes to the end of its forwardmovement. By varying the thickness or number of washers K the bolt E can be held back more or less, as desired. The rearward movement of the bolt E is limited by shoulders L, formed upon the case H, as shown in Fig. 3, or the shoulders L may be formed on the upper face of the iin gerbar A, as shown in Fig. 2, for the head of the said bolt E to strike against. The side parts of the case or cover H have longitudinal slots M formed in them to receive the bolts N, by which the said case is secured to the nger-bar A,so

that the said case and the bolt E, connected If desired, thecases H can be made wide enough to bring 'the slots M over the bolts O, that secure the fingers C to the finger-bar A, as indicated in Fig. 4, so that the cases H and the ngers C can be secured to the finger-bar A by the same bolts. Vith this construction, when the sickles D strike against the stalks of grass or grain being cut, the said sickles will yield or move back a little, so as to'opcrate with a drawing cut, and thus do their work easier than when made to move in a straight line, the said sickles, as soon as a cut has been made, being forced forward by the springs I, ready for another cut.

Having thus described my invention, whatl IOC Patent, is-

1. The combination, with a finger-bar, ot' a sickle-bar and a spring or springs pressing transversely against theback face of said sicklebar, whereby the latter is caused to yield in a direction transversely to its length by the pressure of the grain or grass being cut, thus insuring a draw cut, as set forth.

2. In a mower, reaper, or other harvester, the combination, with the finger-bar A and the sickle-bar B, of the sliding bolts E, having recesses F in their heads, the springs I, and the guides G, substantially as herein shown and described, whereby the sickles will be made to operate with a drawing cut, as set forth.

3. In a mower, reaper, or other harvester, the combination, with the finger-bar A, the

claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters I sickle-bar B, and the spring-pressed bolts E, 2o

of cases H, having their sides slotted to receive thefastening-bolts, substantially as herein shown and described, whereby the said bolts and. springs can be moved forward to take up wear, and will be covered and protected when z 5 in use, as set forth.

4. In a mower, reaper, or other harvester, the case H, made, substantially as herein shown and described, with a guide, G, shoulders L, and slots M, to adapt it to receive and 3o protect the sliding bolt and its spring that loosely hold the sickle-bar in place, as set forth.

GEORGE WILLIAM FREEMAN.

Witnesses:

ARTHUR R. DIcKEY, J. MEDLEY TowNsHED. 

